Sex offender Robert Fardon to stay out of jail after Qld Government abandons High Court appeal

Updated
Thu Jan 16 07:41:57 EST 2014

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Robert John Fardon was freed from prison last month after the Queensland Government lost an appeal against his release.

Corrective Services Queensland

The Queensland Government has abandoned plans for a High Court appeal to keep serial sex offenders like Robert John Fardon behind bars.

Fardon was freed from jail last month and moved into a residential facility at Wacol in south-west Brisbane when Attorney-General Jarrod Bleijie lost a second appeal against his release.

The Court of Appeal also ruled new laws giving the Government the power to keep some sex offenders behind bars were invalid.

At the time Mr Bleijie said he would seek legal advice on launching an appeal in the High Court.

The Government has now received that advice and says it indicated such an appeal would not be successful.

"We have done more than any other government to keep Robert John Fardon behind bars, but our legal advice is that we just can't win in the High Court," Acting Attorney-General David Crisafulli said in a statement.

"We kept Fardon in prison after successfully appealing his release last year and we lodged a subsequent appeal when he was ordered to be released again.

"We did everything we could but some of Queensland's top silks, including the Solicitor-General, all advised we were out of options."

The 65-year-old remains on a 24-hour curfew and cannot leave his front door without permission.

He is only allowed out for essential trips accompanied by an escort and wearing a GPS tracker.

"We are doing everything possible to ensure the community is protected," Mr Crisafulli said.

"We didn’t want him out in the first place, but it’s now a matter of keeping him on a very tight leash and working out ways to ensure other people like him are kept behind bars.

"Our resolve will not be broken and that’s why we are working on toughening the existing legislation."

Fardon has spent most of his adult life in prison after being convicted of numerous sex offences against women and children dating back to the 1960s.